The Anti-Israel Monopoly in the UK

In Britain, it is open season on both Israel and the Jews.

Daily Mail columnist Melanie Phillips' awakening as to what it means to be a Jew today in England during an appearance as a panelist on the BBC's current affairs program Question Time. An Israeli professor in the audience questioned the double standard according to which America can track down terrorists have way around the world while Israel is criticized for doing the same with respect to terrorists on its own backdoor.

Phillips followed up by noting that the world still evinces some sympathy when Israel children are killed, but none when Israel acts to prevent its children from being murdered. The audience hissed.

A little later in the show, fellow panelist, Will Self asked Phillips archly, "If Britain declared war on Israel, where would your sympathies lie?" With that he wanted the audience to know something not immediately obvious from Phillips' name - i.e., she is Jewish. And more importantly, that anything she says can be safely disregarded since Jews can never really be loyal citizens of any country.

To defend the state of Israel in England today is to mark oneself as not really British.

When Phillips replied to Self's question that it is inconceivable that Britain would ever attack the only viable democracy in the Middle East, the audience laughed derisively at her description of Israel as a democracy. With that the penny dropped for Phillips: To defend the state of Israel in England today is to mark oneself as not really British.

Nor was that the end of Phillips education. More than a year later, she was a panelist on a BBC radio program. Her fellow panelist was veteran left-wing rabble-rouser Tariq Ali, who delivered his standard stump speech about George W. Bush being a greater threat to world peace than Saddam Hussein. The real rogue state with nuclear weapons that needed dealing with in the Middle East, he charged, was not Iraq, but Israel. And the audience erupted in applause and cheering, even though this particular broadcast was taking place in the heartland of Conservative Britain -- Wokingham, Berkshire.

Of these experiences, Phillips would write later, "I no longer feel comfortable in my own country because of the poison that has welled up toward Israel and the Jews… It is not an exaggeration to say that, in Britain at present, it is open season on both Israel and the Jews."

I have no trouble crediting Phillips' account of her BBC appearances, for on a recent visit to England I too happened to catch Question Time. Though I'm not British, and even though I was safely ensconced in a friend's study, not on the panel in front of a hissing and jeering audience, I too experienced a great sense of unease. The subject that night was the letter of 52 British diplomats lambasting Prime Minister Tony Blair for his support of American policy vis-à-vis Iraq and Israel.

The criticism of Israel was more on the order of cheerleading than intellectual argument.

There was not one member of the panel who could be remotely described as a defender of Israel, and there was one skilled panelist, billed as an American Moslem scholar, eager to dig in the knife at every opportunity. Not that much skill was required. The criticism of Israel was more on the order of cheerleading than intellectual argument. To get the audience going nothing more was needed than to mention Israel. (To be honest, many of the panelists did the same with Tony Blair.) It was like watching Tommy Lapid rail against charedim at a Shinui rally.

Mindless Leftism, on the level of Tariq Ali, seemed pretty much the common denominator, and I wondered at the education system that had produced this mostly young audience.

What makes the situation in Britain so much worse than that in the United States, where a similar Leftism is largely regnant on many elite university campuses, is the lack of any intellectual counterweight. Many of the most widely read and respected columnists in America are consistently strong defenders of Israel: George Will, Charles Krauthamer, Martin Peretz, Victor Davis Hanson, Jeff Jacoby. By contrast, in England only Phillips, Michael Gove in the Times, and Barbara Amiel in the Telegraph can be reliably counted on to fill that role, and Amiel has been largely discredited by the travails of her husband Conrad Black.

In the United States, the conservative think tanks, such as the American Enterprise Institute, Heritage Foundation, and the Hudson Institute, provide an intellectual ballast to the universities. As a consequence of those think tanks, and of such neo-conservative journals as Commentary and Public Interest, the intellectual ferment for the past quarter century in America has been on the Right.

The Left, on the other hand, has shown no inclination to move beyond the received verities of the New Deal. One measure of the intellectual rigor mortis on most of the Left is the total inability to rethink the world in the wake of 9/11. In the 2002 elections, the Democrats main issue was prescription drugs for seniors, just as it had been in 2000.

Neocon thought, of course, views Israel as a crucial bastion of the defense of Western values. But the neo-liberal The New Republic is hardly less supportive of Israel's war on terrorism. There is simply no equivalent in England to these influential journals, nor to the editorial page of the Wall Street Journal.

At the popular level, as well, there are many forces in America that provide important support for Israel that simply have no parallel in England. One of those is the tens of millions of evangelical Christians, who are Israel's most fervent supporters in the United States, and who wield enormous influence within the Republican Party. A second factor is the existence of talk radio, which is dominated by conservative and mainly pro-Israel voices.

Both Melanie Phillips and Michael Gove told me that they cannot, in the current intellectual climate, find British publishers for their latest book proposals: in Gove's case an argument for a more faithful neoconservative approach to the war in Iraq and in Phillips' a plea for common sense in education, family life, defense of Western values and Israel.

The absolute monopoly of British intellectual life by the mandarins of the BBC and leftish dons should be a cause of concern not only for Israel but for every British Jew.

The opinions expressed in the comment section are the personal views of the commenters. Comments are moderated, so please keep it civil.

Visitor Comments: 18

(17)
Esther,
April 11, 2011 2:38 AM

Plenty of left-wing Americans support Israel too

You don't need to go all the way to the right to the Heritage Foundation, George Will and the evangelical movement to find defenders of Israel in the US! As Mr. Rosenblum says, the New Republic is pro-Israel, as is the New York Times (yes, I know it is occassionally critical, but it is broadly, and intelligently, pro-Israel). I'm a moderate Democrat, and find that my views are hardly remarkable.

(16)
lisa,
July 25, 2010 2:37 AM

Please don't dismiss the UK out of hand

As a Jew, I do agree with much of the analysis in this profoundly depressing article. The BBC/academic and left-wing driven antisemitism in Britain today is frightening in its ambition and intensity. However - this is the country that gave shelter and sanctuary to my family during the 1930's and enabled us to live, profit, and become part of a society which has never made us feel personally unwelcome.
When talking to the aforementioned silent majority of ordinary British people, many are sympathetic if not actually supportive of the position Israel finds itself in, and most are rather more concerned about the threat of fundamentalist Islam to their own way of life then may appear obvious.
Wealthy Islamic countries and benefactors have poured money into British educational establishments and lobbied leftwing institutions such as the BBC and certain newspapers in order to wield an impressive amount of influence in the demonising of Israel and subsequently, the advent of a new form of anti-semitism. The anti-Israel/Jewish proganda has been insidiously and very cleverly accomplished, but there's no doubt it has been a deftly waged and planned campaign.
The only ray of hope exists in the ingrained streak of basic decency which still abides in the heart of so-called, Middle England. I see and hear it everyday in the actions and opinions of the majority of people I live and work with. There are a lot of good and fair-minded British people - and I consider myself to be one of them.

(15)
Alan R. Naftalis,
June 1, 2008 1:16 PM

BRITISH ANTI-SEMITISM IS NOT NEW

Mr Rosenblum''s account of the visceral anti-Israel atmosphere in Britain today should stir every Jew to examine the rather long history of anti-Semitism in Britain.Historical events like the York Massacre, the expulsion of the Jewish population and the refusal to seat a Rothchild in Parliment unless he pledged fidelity to Christ are pre-cursors of today''s attitude. The Anglican Chuch has a long history of anti-Semistism, so the anti-Israel posture of Archbishop Tutu and The Archbishop of Canterberry among other Anglican clergy are merely a continuation of that tradition. Social anti-Semitism has been a hallmark of the British upper classes for centuries. Even Benjamin Disreali, Queen Victoria''s favorite Prime Minister, was subjected to anti-Semitic slurs despite the fact he had been converted to Christianity. The Duke of Windsor was among the most notorious anti-Semites of the 20th century. Even when Jews significantly contributed to Britain''s reputation, they were still subjected to social exclusion: take the example of Harold Benjamin, an Olympic medalist who was one of the subjects of the film Charriots of Fire. The actor Daniel Day Lewis and the playright Harold Pinter have spoken of being beaten up as children because they were Jews. Britain''s literature is checkered with unfavorable depictions of Jews from Shakespeare''s Shylock to Dickens'' Fagin. In the shadow of the Holocaust, the British continued to enforce the White Paper and sent thousands of concentration camp survivors to new camps rather than grant them the dignity of resettling in a new safe homeland. Britain''s Foriegn Minister Bevin in the postwar Labor government was a notorious anti-Semite and vigorously opposed the creation of a Jewish homeland. In that regard he was not alone for the British Foriegn Ministry has been the home to countless Arabists who have consistently opposed the Jewish state.It''s also worth noting that the British armed, trained and commanded the Arab Legion, the army of TransJordan (today''s Jordan) which was responsible for the expolusion of the Jews from the old city of Jerusalem and the susequent desecration of Jewish holy sites.
In current day Britain the entire debate on the Middle East is controled by anti-Israel persons from Vanessa Redgrave (who made a propanda film in which she danced with PLO mmasked terrorists and later felt free to make anti-Semitic comments at the Oscars)to Britain''s national University Profesors Union which voted a boycott of Israeli Universities and professors which was all too similar to the Nuremberg Laws exclusion of Jews from German Universities to the almost daily barrage of anti-Israel reporting on the BBC. It is no small wonder that when 2 American Professors wanted to publish an article charging the "Jewish Lobby" with controling American foriegn policy, they chose to have it published in a British journal while claiming that Jewish interests would prevent it from being published here. The question posed to Melanie Phillips regarding her true loyalty is one of the classic canards of anti-Semites and its favorable reception by the audience tells us just how deeply that is believed in Britain. Sadly there is little we can do to change this tradition, but there are things we can do to fight it. In the USA, the BBC is broadcast nightly on public television and these broadcasts are a bastion of anti-Israel propoganda.Jewish donors to public television should announce that they are withholding contributions until the program is dropped (a portion of their contributions go to pay for that broadcast). Jewish organizations should consider dropping Britain as a location in their travel programs so long as various British groups engage in anti-Israel boycotts. And most importantly, we should be vigilent in writing letters to the Economist, the Financial Times & other British publications every time they publish an article which distorts the truth in Israel/Palestine problem. We must not remain silent as our enemies attack us, we must unmask them for what they are: bigots, for as we all know, anti-Zionism is merely a polite way to be anti-Semitic.

(14)
Gary Selikow,
May 23, 2005 12:00 AM

The Left ignores Israeli/Jewish suffering

Nothing about the thousand Jews in Israel , mainly women and children , who have been massacred , by bomb, bullet and knife in the war of genocide against the Israeli people , known as the Intifada.
Nothing about the pregant Jewish mother and her four terrified small daughters , executed one by one by Arafatian goons at Gaza.
Nothing about the five-year-old girl, Danielle Shefi, who was shot to death at point blank range by an Arab killer, while cowering under her parents’ bed.
Nothing about the countless Jewish children murdered in the last four years and the last 80 years in Arab pogroms against Jews in the Land of Israel.
The meaning of Israel is clear. The Jew has experienced too much death, and a portion of the Jewish people decided that they would die quietly no more. So it is: and no argument, no clever political talk, no logic and no parading of right and wrong can change this fact. The Jews returned to Israel because it was their ancient land. From 1810 onwards Jews in the Land of Israel have been murdered by Arabs. The pious Jews of Safed, who would raise no hand in their own defence, had been robbed and murdered and burned out again and again by Arabs-as the Jews in Jerusalem and Tiberias had been robbed and slain and burned out. Bedouin Arabs passed through Israel at will-and robbed and killed Jews as a profitable thing. In the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, Arab feudal lords in Israel organized pogroms precisely as the Czar had organized pogroms. The Land of Israel was a blighted and empty land until the Zionist Movement returned it to life.
In 1920 , Jews where masscared in Jersualem and in 1921 in Jaffa. In 1929 the entire ages old Jewish community of Hebron was massacred and from 1936 to 1939 , inspired and supported by Hitler's Nazi regime in Germany , pogroms spread across the Land of Israel , taking thousands of Jewish lives.
Considering the culture of hate , inculcated in refugee camps and in the 'Palestinian Authority' against Jews and considering the genocide by Arabs against minorities in Sudan , against the Kurd and in Lebanon , we all know that the so-called unitary state of 'Palestine' with an Arab majority , which leftwing commentators are now presenting as the solution, would lead to a second holocaust.
Arab countries take up ten percent of the earth's land area , whereas Israel is the size of the Kruger National Park.
Of the population of the Arab states , more than a quarter are probabely made up of non-Arab minorities such as the Kurds , the Nilotic Black peoples of South Sudan , the Berbers of Algeria , Tunisia and Morocco , the Druze of Syria , the Christian Copts of Egypt , and the Maronites of Lebanon.
These minorities face discrimination , and in some cases , such as the South Sudanese and the Maronites , have been subjected to horrific genocide.
Why is it so unjust that a small section of the vast Arab population - those who call themselves 'Palestinians'- should live as a minority in Israel?

SamtheSham,
May 8, 2011 11:02 PM

Expecting moral logic from the Muslim mentality........????

Gary....Anti-Jew (in all its' variations), is a form of sad developmental/hysterical madness. As we all know, that throughout history, we Jews have been meeting secretly in the rear function rooms of Moshe's Deli and making our plans to control the world!!!! I, for one, don't enjoy Roumanian Pastrami on a seeded bulkie with half sour pickles and potato salad topped off with a Dr. Brown's Celery Soda which is typically served at these meetings. I suspect if we converted to Islam and carpet-to-nosed 5 times per day, we'd have it made....Correct?!?! TTFN

(13)
James,
July 31, 2004 12:00 AM

Sad but true

Whilst a depressing article I do believe that the silent majority in Britain support Israel. Look at which two newspapers sell the most – The Daily Mail and The Sun. Politically both of these newspapers support the state of Israel. The anti-Israel propaganda has demonised a democratic state that is the only country in the Middle East to have women’s rights, gay rights and freedom of speech. What I find most frightening is how quickly and effectively their propaganda has been in turning people against Israel. I fear things will only get worse. Given that Ken Livingstone feels it’s acceptable to welcome a Muslim scholar who supports suicide bombs against Jews these are not good times. Hopefully things might look up when the Tories get in?

(12)
Eric,
June 4, 2004 12:00 AM

The settlements are inciting Euro anti-semitism...

It is an over-simplification to say that American conservatives are pro-Jewish and progressives are anti-Jewish. In America, as in England, society is so splintered culturally, politically, socially, religiously, etc. that there are no sweeping statements that accurately capture the zeitgeist. That said, it seems obvious that Europeans (and the French, in particular) have embraced the issue of the settlements as a justification for anti-semitism. Mr. Sharon's plan to unilaterally withdraw and separate Israeli life from that in Gaza and the West Bank will a) expose the Arab hypocrisy that they care about the "Palestinians," b) ensure greater safety for all Israelis, and c) remove the dangerous justification being cited by the Europeans in their vocalization against Israel (and really, against the Jewish people). Please consider the merit in Mr. Sharon's plan.

(11)
David B. Mitchell, Esq.,
May 29, 2004 12:00 AM

Britain's Anti-Semitism is a Euro-problem

With the evolution of the EU into an amorphous anti-Western liberal clique, the true nature of its anti-democratic and anti-Israel tilt is becoming obvious. We have the same issue in the US on the Left (i.e., "progressives")and Americans feel rather poorly about the state of England today as it faces its EU "destiny." It's up to PM Blair to set the tone for discussion about Israel and the Jews of Britain. He must speak up now. He stands with the US in Iraq, and courageously so, and he cannot let this domestic EU cancer of anti-Israel/anti-Semitism spread into the body politic.

(10)
Anonymous,
May 29, 2004 12:00 AM

Sobering and sad

This is not surprising nor truly scary at all, when one considers that Britain has a large Muslim population. Europe has a large Muslim population, so their views will be obvious. No, what truly scares me is when countries without large Muslim populations are blatantly anti-Israel. Non-European countries that have Judeo-Christian values, when they are openly anti-Israel, that's the time to be nervous. Thank goodness for the old USA.

(9)
Perry Debell,
May 28, 2004 12:00 AM

Melanie Philips was unlucky in her run in with Will Self, because the same question about loyalty to the U.K., if put to some of the the recently fundamentalised British Moslems would, if answered truthfully, be likelt to indicate adherence to Islam rather than the U.K. The 300,000 British Jews are British first and their faith is not the issue. British Moslems of Pakistani descent or Iraqi or any other country which has Islam at its heart could equally be potentially disloyal to the U.K. in the event of a conflict between the U.K. and those countries. On a balance of probabilities, the great numbers of those who are followers of Islam in the U.K. will also be British first and their faith not the issue. Yet, I am troubled by the thought that these more recent subjects of the Crown, have not lived with us long enough to be as well integrated into society as Jews. They have been with us since Cromwell saw sense and have contributed greatly to our country. It is important to note that the Protestant Hugenots also were a welcome addition to creating wealth with their knowledge of textiles. It seems to me that sharing cultures is essential. Poles who settled after WW2 delight in their history, but equally, they and their families love living here. Staying resolutely separate from being part of the style of life in the U.K. ultimately works against those who do so. They will find themselves discontented in the U.K., but unwilling to face the lower standards of living if they were to live in the countries from whence their recent forebears decamped. A sense of history is essential in order to understand today's comflicts. Curiously, I have not found it easy to understand why Arafat's family are able to live high on the hog in Europe without the average Arab seemingly knowing about it.

In addition, perhaps the Israeli government should give consideration to prosecuting Arafat in the Court of Human Rights for child abuse in advocating death over life. Do the same to those parents who council their kids in the same way. Prove it in court. Take the children into protective custody and away from the camps. Beam the PA adverts encouraging child death around the world so everyone can see what is going on in Rafah. Expose Arafat's hypocrisy. Show his family's life style on satellite television or on the Internet. Get the facts out there, now!!!!!!! Or else, it will all go pear shaped.

(8)
Ben,
May 26, 2004 12:00 AM

I would not say libralism is to blame for anti-semetism... In fact, as someone who is left of center, I find it disgusting that the far left AND the far right are very anti-jewish...

What frightens me more is the fact that the far right whose members are mostly christian fundimentalists, are embracing Israel not as a friend... But to hasten the so-called second coming of their false messiah.

I would be very cautious in making friends with them, because the minute they wake up and see that Jewish people such as myself are committed to remaining Jewish, they will turn as quickly as the Left. what is needed is a centrist position because straying too far left and too far right is too dangerous.

(7)
Anonymous,
May 25, 2004 12:00 AM

ANGLICAN CHURCH AND VATICAN BIAS

THE VISCERAL HATRED AND PSEUDO-INTELLECTUAL ANTI-SEMITISM IN ENGLAND IS NOT NEW. BOTH THE ANGLICAN CHURCH AND VATICAN(INDEED, STRANGE BED PARTNERS) HAVE AS THEIR AGENDA THE DENIAL OF THE JEW PERIOD--I.E., AS LONG AS THE JEW EXISTS, THE JEW OUTRIGHT REFUTES AND OBLITERATES THEIR "EXCLUSIVITY" OF FAITH. THE ENGLISH ARE JUST NOW JOINING THE REST OF EUROPE IN NOT BEING SO "ENGLISH" ABOUT THEIR HATRED. THEIR ARTIFCIAL POLITENESS AND ARROGANCE SHOWS THROUGH AND THEIR ANGLICAN BISHOPS KISS UP TO THE ANTI-SEMITIC HATRED. IT FITS THEIR ANTI-ISRAEL BIAS WHICH IS CODE LANGUAGE FOR ANTI-SEMITISM. THEY TRY TO COVER UP THEIR HATRED OF JEWS USING ANTI-ISRAEL/ZIONIST HATRED AS THEIR TRANSPARENT COVER.

(6)
Peter Walters,
May 24, 2004 12:00 AM

as an Englishman, I have to agree...

As an Englishman I have been subjected to direct anti-semitism very rarely; yet as a religious Jew I am constantly asked about Israeli policy and required to denounce it. When I choose not to do so I am roundly attacked. Anti-Israel is the new anti-semitism, and I can only conclude that the "good" Jew is the inoffensive, weak victim of aggression that we can feel good about pitying. When a Jew defends himself, is strong and determined, that Jew is the "bad" Israeli.

Undoubtedly the British media revel in giving a blatantly one-sided account of events and politics in Israel, and reality is rarely allowed to intrude. And, of course, we now have a huge Moslem population who have few qualms about supporting violence.

(5)
Dennis Allgood,
May 23, 2004 12:00 AM

Who's in charge of Israels PR?

I know that the actions taken by Israel in Yesha are in self defense but in the media Israel is portrayed as the agressor. Shouldn't Israel afford an influential journal in places like England?

(4)
Andrew Gelbman,
May 23, 2004 12:00 AM

Mindless Leftism...

In leftist circles, hatred of Jews is almost required, unless the Jew in question is themselves anti-semitic (like Israel Shahak and other assorted idiots who happened to have had Jewish parents).

Anti-Zionism is anti-Semitism. What are the "anti-Zionists" saying to the Jews? Don't be here and don't be in Israel... in short, don't be.

(3)
Samuel L. Frydman,
May 23, 2004 12:00 AM

21st Century "Reality Poetry Slam"....

At age 65, a veteran, an American, a Jew, a father, a grandfather, a very curious mind and an Electrical Engineer's degree & training + an advanced business degree and hand-built practical business success....
a poem for the unbalanced viewpoints:

"If there is no room on earth for the Jew
Then be assured there is no room for you." TTFN

(2)
Rae Spengler,
May 23, 2004 12:00 AM

The amount of Jew hatred is equal to the increased muslim population

Europe, and especially England, has a growing arab/muslim population which in general detests Jews and America. It is no surprise that England, which always had a history of Jew hatred, is far more open about this today than ever before.

As far as a Jew's loyality is concerned, please ask Ms. Philips to ask the following question to the Jew hater:
First, what religion are you? For the sake of this say they answer...Christian. Then ask: Are you a Christian first or are you British first? If they answer..British, then say...you are a very bad Christian.
One's first loyality is always to God, then oneself, family and country. If they have no religion or belief in God, then they are lost and their question is of no consequence.

(1)
J Chazan,
May 23, 2004 12:00 AM

British Anti-Israel and Anti-Jewish Sentiment

I raeding reading this article is bone chilling. The Jewish people and the State of Israel have done a terrible job of putting forward our view. I fear that Jews are once again too comfortable, and will pay a price for neglecting to protect ourselves. We have not been outspoken enough to counter the constant political and verbal attacks we suffer.

I want to know about the concept of "sin" due to Adam and Eve eating from the Tree of Knowledge. The Christian concept of sin revolves around the fall of the man and the "original sin." Does Judaism view it the same way?

The Aish Rabbi Replies:

Adam and Eve were punished according to their actions. In other words, God laid down the conditions for Adam and Eve to live in the garden, provided they would not eat from the Tree of Knowledge. However, if they were to eat from that tree they would be punished by experiencing death. (If they had not eaten from the tree, they would have remained immortal.)

This sets down the basic principle in Judaism of Reward and Punishment. Basic to this is that every person has the choice of doing good or bad. When a person chooses "good" – as defined by God – he is able to draw close to God. In other words, every individual has a chance to "gain salvation" through his own actions.

My understanding of Christianity, however, is that the Original Sin has infected all of mankind to the point where individuals are incapable of achieving salvation through their own initiative. Man is "totally depraved" and therefore his only hope of salvation is through the cross.

This belief is contrary to the teachings of Judaism. From the Torah perspective, an individual does not need to rely on anyone else to atone for them. In Judaism, sins can be "erased" altogether by sincere repentance and a firm resolution never to repeat the mistakes.

For more on this, read "Their Hollow Inheritances" by Michael Drazin – www.drazin.com

Yahrtzeit of Moses in 1273 BCE (Jewish year 2488), on the same day of his birth 120 years earlier. (Consequently, "May you live to 120" has become a common Jewish blessing.) Moses was born in Egypt at a time when Pharaoh had decreed that all Jewish baby boys be drowned in the Nile River. His mother set him afloat in a reed basket, where he was -- most ironically -- discovered by Pharaoh's daughter and brought to Pharaoh's palace to be raised. When Moses matured, his heart turned to aid the Jewish people; he killed an Egyptian who was beating a Jew, and he fled to Midian where he married and had two sons. God spoke to Moses at the Burning Bush, instructing him to return to Egypt and persuade Pharaoh to "let My people go." Moses led the Jews through the ten plagues, the Exodus, and the splitting of the Red Sea. Seven weeks later, the Jews arrived at Mount Sinai and received the Torah, the only time in human history that an entire nation experienced Divine revelation. Over the next 40 years, Moses led the Jews through wanderings in the desert, and supervised construction of the Tabernacle. Moses died before being allowed to enter the promised Land of Israel. He is regarded as the greatest prophet of all time.

Lack of gratitude is at the root of discontent. In order to be consistently serene, we must master the attribute of being grateful to the Creator for all His gifts. As the Torah (Deuteronomy 26:11) states, "Rejoice with all the good the Almighty has given you." This does not negate our wanting more. But it does mean that we have a constant feeling of gratitude since as long as we are alive, we always have a list of things for which to be grateful.

[Just before Moses' death] God said to him, "This is the Land that I promised to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob" (Deuteronomy 34:4).

The Midrash says that Moses pleaded to live long enough to be able to enter the Promised Land. He surrendered his soul only after God instructed him to enter Heaven and inform the Patriarchs that the Israelites had come to their Land and that God had indeed fulfilled His promise to give the Land of Israel to their descendants. To fulfill God's will was dearer to Moses than his craving to enter the Land.

It is only natural to cling to life, and the thought of leaving this world is depressing. However, if a person develops the attitude that he lives only in order to fulfill God's will, then life and death are no longer polar opposites, because he lives to do the will of God, and when that will requires that he leave this world, he will be equally obedient.

The seventh day of Adar is the anniversary of Moses' death. He wanted to enter the Promised Land so that he could fulfill the commandments and thereby have a new opportunity to fulfill the Divine wish. He surrendered his soul willingly when he was told that there was a special commandment for him to perform, one that could only be achieved after leaving this earth.

We refer to Moses as Rabbeinu, our teacher. He not only taught us didactically, but by means of everything he did in his life - and by his death, as well.

Today I shall...

try to dedicate my life to fulfilling the will of God, so that even when that will contradicts my personal desires, I can accept it with serenity.

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